From the Ashes
by Oonagh
Summary: Danziger is faced with tough decisions after Devon is placed in the cryochamber. This story picks up where ALL ABOUT EVE left off. Contains some JuliaAlonzo and a very little D&D in later chapters.
1. Chapter 1

**From the Ashes**

_By Oonagh_

Disclaimer: I do not own _Earth 2 _or any of the characters associated with the show and I will make no profit from this story, I'm merely writing for fun.

Author's Note: This story – the first I've ever written – takes place immediately following _All About Eve_ and the onset of Devon's mystery ailment. The first chapter is very short but the others will be longer. Please read and review, I'd like to know what you think.

_Its been seven days since I took over leadership of this group and since I gained guardianship of a heartbroken nine-year-old boy. I don't really know what to do about either of those situations but promises are important – the more so since we arrived here and have no one to rely on but one another, a small group of not-quite-strangers. But promises don't equip us to deal with tragedy or to fill a position we were never born to hold. For seven days we stayed here, searching for answers, for clues, for a cure. But today we leave. We can do no more here and so I keep my promise and what remains of the group moves on, together. I just hope I can live up to the faith Devon put in me. I hope I haven't already let her down._

Ulysses Adair fingered the red ribbons that hung from the marker he had placed on the cryo-chamber that held his mother. He wasn't sure what had prompted him to leave his homemade Terrian staff there but Uly was becoming used to knowing he was supposed to do things without understanding why. And leaving the staff there made him feel better. A little. He knew that the adults were afraid of the Terrians but he wasn't. They had saved his life- bad people wouldn't do that. But they hadn't helped his mother and that made him angry. He had tried and tried to talk to the Terrians but there had been no answer. And now they were leaving, moving on without his mum. Mr. Danziger said that Dr. Julia could not help his mother here. That she needed more medicine, different medicine. Dr. Julia said that Dr. Vasquez would be able to help when he got here. Uly knew she was trying to make him feel better but it hadn't worked. It was two years before the colony ship would come. Two years without his mother. He would be eleven by then. And, deep in his heart, he was afraid that Dr. Vasquez would not be able to do anything. After all he had never managed to cure the Syndrome and he'd worked on it for _years_. Uly lifted his hand from the red ribbons and stroked his mother's face through the glass, tears streaming from his eyes.

'Good-bye, Mum. I love you.'


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: See chapter one.

Bess stood behind the Transrover, watching her husband help load the equipment. THe men had been working all morning in silence. The whole group had agreed with Danziger's decision to leave, they all knew they couldn't stay here indefinitely. But that didn't mean they liked it. The idea of leaving Devon behind – of leaving anyone behind – horrified them. And the idea of going on without their leader terrified them. Morgan turned and smiled at Bess, although it came out as more of a grimace. She handed him the last small bag.

'That's the lot, Morgan. Everything's packed.' He nodded and passed the word on to Alonzo who jumped down and went to tell Danziger they were ready to leave. Bess clambered up on to the 'rover and found a comfortable place to sit. It was her ay to ride, or so Danziger had said over breakfast. She wanted to walk but she hadn't wanted to argue and make things more difficult for him. Anyone could see how unhappy he was about leaving. And so she would ride and make sure the kids did too. From atop the vehicle she watched as the group congregated, slinging bags over their shoulders and avoiding each other's eyes. Danziger came last, walking out of the spaceship leading Uly by the hand. He lifted the boy on to the 'rover beside True and then swung himself into the cab. The engine started and the caravan of colonists moved out, slowly and sadly.

For two days they travelled like that, taking turns walking and riding. THe only exception to this was Julia who rode constantly in the ATV, working in a VR lab she had had Morgan set up for her. She emerged only to eat and even then only at strong urging from Alonzo. The others looked at her with concern every time she joined them. She had been like this for nine days now, ever since she activated the cryo-chamber. Driven, Alonzo called it. Others used the word obsessive. Either way, with each day that passed the circles beneath her eyes grew darker and her temper grew shorter. Julia was not used to feeling useless – her whole life was dedicated to fighting disease ad she hated to lose a battle. And in this case it was worse because Devon wasn't dead and yet Julia could still do nothing. She had taken the decision to move on badly, seeing it as an admission that she had failed. But despite that she wasn't prepared to give up yet. By early evening of the second day everyone had given up suggesting that she take it easy and had accepted that Julia would have to decide when to ease up herself.

Julia wasn't the only one the crew worried about. Uly had barely spoken since his mother collapsed. He answered any question directed at him, but only with one or two words. No-one, not even Yale, could get him involved in conversation. The young boy had attached himself to True, a silent shadow, and refused to be separated from her. To the surprise of everyone, True took this well. No one understood why Uly had chosen True. Their relationship had always been one of friendly rivalry but now Uly had chosen True above all the others. Even True didn't understand why this was but she felt sorry for the boy who had just lost his only parent. True couldn't imagine living without her dad.

And so he dealt patiently with Uly, talking to him as normal but not expecting any replies. She told him stories of her life on the station – so different from his- and stories her father had read her to sleep with when she was younger. Danziger watched this with amazement and pride. And no small amount of fear. Times like this made him realise that his little girl was growing up.

The second day after leaving the spaceship they stopped early because they had found a perfect campsite, complete with a stream which tested clean. In their months on the planet the crew had learned better than to pass by drinkable water. The adults – all except Julia – began setting up the tents while True and Uly gathered firewood from the edge of a nearby forest.

'True, do you still miss your mother?' True turned to face Uly, surprised he had spoken.

'Yes.' Even thinking about it made her sad.

'Do you think you'll miss her forever?'

'Yes.'

'Me too.' Uly went back to picking up dead branches and loading them on to Zero's arms. True watched him for a moment and then went back to work, understanding at last why he had chosen to latch on to her.

After dinner that evening – another virtually silent meal – Danziger announced that they would not move on tomorrow, taking the opportunity of drinkable water to replenish their dwindling supplies. This was the first decision he'd made since assuming leadership that he felt comfortable with. He didn't have to ask himself what Devon would do. He knew she'd stay and restock. This thought almost made him laugh. He'd spent so much of his time since landing on this planet fighting with Devon over her decisions and yet now that she was gone he found that needed her opinion. In the last nine days he had realised something. Devon had done a good job as leader and, without even realising it, he had come to trust her judgement. And he'd be very glad to have her back and hand responsibility over. With this thought in mind he headed over to the med-tent, to which Julia had returned immediately after eating. Entering through the flap he stood and watched her work for a few moments before speaking. She moved jerkily, constantly muttering to herself. Danziger appreciated her dedication and understood her desperation but he was worried about her. Someone needed to convince her she was only human.

'Any progress, Julia?' Her head whipped round and she glared at him.

'I would have told you if there was.'

'Sorry. Just asking.' Julia ran her hands through her hair and sighed.

'No, I'm sorry. I'm just a bit frustrated.'

'And exhausted.' Julia scowled

'I'm fine!'

'I just told the rest of the group we'd be staying here tomorrow. We can refill the water tanks and rest a bit.'

'Fine. Whatever.'

'Everybody's going to rest, Julia. Especially you. Even if I have to sedate you.'

'Don't be ridiculous!'

'I mean it Julia. You're no good to Devon or anybody else like this. Those samples will still be there when you wake up.'

'I can't believe this! Don't you want me to find a cure for Devon?'

'Of course I do. But I don't want you to kill yourself doing it. And neither would Devon. So tomorrow you rest, spend some time with Alonzo. Then you can come back with fresh eyes. OK?' Julia continued scowling at him but he met her glare calmly, knowing he was right, and eventually she dropped her eyes.

'OK. But just one day.'

'Just one day, if you promise to take better care of yourself.' Danziger raised an eyebrow and Julia nodded reluctantly. Danziger left the med-tent relieved that he'd been successful and feeling very slightly more confident about being in charge.


	3. Chapter 3

From the Ashes Chapter 3

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

The following day dawned bright and clear. Danziger awoke to find the sun shining in his eyes and he grinned to himself. Devon would be so glad to see the sun – that was her favourite part of living on a planet. He had sat up and started to dress before reality hit him and he remembered that Devon wasn't there anymore to enjoy the sunshine or the rain or the snow. To his shock tears formed in his eyes at this realisation. Angrily, he brushed them away and continued to get ready for the day. His tenth in charge. His first stop was the med-tent, to make sure Julia was keeping her word. Finding it empty he nodded in satisfaction and went in search of breakfast.

"John." Turning, Danziger saw Yale coming towards him.

"Mornin' Yale."

"Good Morning. I was hoping to have a word with you."

"Sure. Go ahead."

"I just wanted to check if its alright for me to hold classes for the children today. I thought that maybe a return to the regular routine would be good for Uly."

"It's worth trying, anyway. Nothing else seems to have worked" Yale heard the frustration in Danziger's voice and he knew the younger man felt guilty about Uly's current state.

"It is only to be expected that the child will have some difficulty with acceptance."

"Yeah. Leaving your mother comatose in a fridge can't be easy." Yale grimaced slightly at Danziger's choice of words but he didn't call him on it. He suspected that Danziger's gruffness and practicality covered a grief almost as deep as Uly's. And he also suspected that their new leader didn't realise this yet. So Yale simply nodded and headed off in search of his two pupils – knowing, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that he would find them together.

Morgan helped himself to breakfast from the huge pot sitting on the fire while watching Yale and Danziger talk.

"I wonder what they're planning."

"What, honey?" Bess Martin looked up from her own breakfast to see what had attracted her husband's attention. When she saw Danziger and Yale she sighed.

"They're just talking, Morgan."

"But what are they talking _about_?" Bess rolled her eyes slightly.

"I'm sure if it's important they'll tell us."

"But will they? Will Danziger even recognise it as being important?"

"Morgan, we've been through this before."

"I know. But I just feel uncomfortable. I mean he's a _Drone_. What does he know about leadership? I'll admit he's a great mechanic, even if he doesn't stick to protocol, but really, what was Devon thinking?" Bess sighed heavily and spoke in a firm voice.

"Danziger is doing a great job, Morgan. He's been invaluable since the crash. You know that. And besides I trust Devon. If she thinks he can do it, he can do it."

"Yeah, well. She was sick. Who's to say she was in her right mind?"

"Morgan!" Bess allowed her frustration to show in her voice and Morgan reacted just like she knew he would.

"Sorry, Bess. You're right. I know you're right. I'm just nervous. You know I don't handle stress well." Bess reached out and stroked his arm.

"Eat your breakfast, honey. It'll look better on a full stomach." Morgan nodded and sat down beside her on the crate. Bess smiled encouragingly at him before returning to her rapidly cooling breakfast.

After breakfast Danziger reluctantly went on a tour of the camp. He wanted to work on the vehicles, find out why the Transrover was freezing up every time he activated voice command mode. But he knew that he had to make sure that everything that needed to be done was being done. _That_ was his main responsibility now. He started out with Julia, checking the med-tent again. When he found it empty he tried her tent, gently opening the flap. He found her fast asleep, head on Alonzo's chest. The pilot was awake and he grinned at Danziger.

"Sorry." Danziger mouthed silently.

"No Problem." Alonzo's reply was just as silent. Danziger removed his head from the tent, satisfied. Some time together would do them both good. From Julia's tent he went to Yale's, knowing that Yale would be doing exactly what he was supposed to be – the tutor was the most reliable person he knew – but Danziger wanted to check on Uly. He took that aspect of his promise to Devon very seriously and was determined to make sure that Uly was okay while his mum was gone. Danziger stopped outside the tent when he heard Yale speaking, reluctant to interrupt.

"And so if you look closely you'll see how traumatic the effect of Amazonian deforestation was on the climate of the earth. Now, can either of you tell me what the worst part of al this was?"

"The people of earth knew the harm chopping down the trees was doing but they did it anyway." Danziger smiled at the anger in True's voice. After some initial resistance True had taken to Yale's classes like a duck to water. The tutor had described her as a passionate pupil and now Danziger knew why. But he still wished the answer had come from Uly, that the boy would show some of his old enthusiasm. Usually the boy was impossible to shut up and Danziger wanted that Uly back. He moved on from what Devon had laughingly called the school house, worrying about how he would explain Uly's emotional withdrawal to the boy's mother. Or maybe just seeing her healthy again would be enough to return him to normal. That line of thought brought a flash of Devon in the Cryo-chamber. Danziger dismissed it. It was bad enough that the image haunted his sleep. Danziger picked up his speed, heading towards the stream and the water collection team. He was almost halfway there when he was hailed from behind.

"Dad! Dad, wait up." He turned around just in time to catch True in his arms and spin her round.

"Da-ad." Her look of outrage made him laugh. She thought she was too old for that. He replaced her on the ground in order to do the same to Uly, who was still a slower runner than True, much to the boy's mortification. Danziger roared like a plane while spinning Uly, eliciting a small smile in response. _Well I guess it's a start_, he thought to himself while putting the child down.

"Aren't you two supposed to be in school?" True shrugged.

"Yale said we could finish early. He said he had some things to do." Danziger frowned slightly. That wasn't like Yale. But then he glanced at Uly, standing silently beside his daughter. Maybe Yale just thought it was for the best.

"So where are you going?"

"The stream. Yale says it's safe to paddle in so long as we stay downstream of the water collection team." Not for the first time Danziger marvelled at True's casual use of words like 'paddle' and 'downstream'. Words that would have been meaningless to her less than a year ago. Silently, he thanked Devon for giving her the chance to experience all this and he promised himself that he'd thank her in person as soon as she woke up.

"Well come on then. Let's go." The three of them walked on to the stream. Danziger stopped to talk to Magus, just to make sure that there were no problems, while the kids ran on downstream, True in the lead. He caught up with them just as they stepped into the water.

"What's it like in there, True?"

"Cold. Are you coming in too?"

"Why not." Danziger removed his shoes and rolled up his trousers, missing True bend over and whisper something in Uly's ear. As he put his feet in the water, Danziger fought the urge to pull them straight back out again. Cold didn't really cover it. He concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, wincing each time he sank in deeper. For this reason he missed the attack. True and Uly ran at him, True screaming wildly, and splashed him mercilessly. It took Danziger a moment to recover but then True took one look at his face and yelled again.

"Run Uly!" Both kids took off splashing through the water, followed by the mechanic, who was much less sure of foot. But he caught them anyway. The ensuing water fight continued for some time. At first Uly played as sullenly and solemnly as he had been doing everything recently but then True tripped Danziger, who fell flat on his back in the water, and Uly started laughing uncontrollably. Soon True and Danziger joined in, delighted to see the boy react to something. The three of them left the stream and returned to camp, soaking wet and still laughing. Alonzo was the first to see them.

"What happened to you three?" Danziger opened his mouth to reply but Uly beat him to it.

"We had a water fight. And then Mr. Danziger fell in the river. It was so funny. He squealed like a girl." Alonzo stared at Uly in surprise as Danziger leapt to defend himself.

"I'll have you know, Ulysses, that was a very manly yell."

"Yeah right", True and Uly responded in Unison. Danziger shook his head in disgust, splashing water everywhere and then turned his attention to Alonzo.

"Where's Julia?" Alonzo's smile faded.

"Med-tent." Danziger scowled, furious at the doctor.

"She promised to take the day off!" Alonzo shrugged slightly.

"Yale turned up and the two of them started babbling. Something about earth and proteins. Then they went off to the med-tent. I think Julia had forgotten I was even there." Alonzo spoke lightly but Danziger knew he was bothered by Julia's recent behaviour, worried both for her and for their relationship.

"Fine. Kids, go and get dried up. And stay in camp for the rest of the day. No wandering off." Without even waiting to see if they obeyed Danziger stalked off toward the med-tent, followed by Alonzo. He didn't bother even trying to knock, just stormed in.

"Julia, get out of here now. I wasn't bluffing about the sediderm." Yale and Julia stopped talking and turned to stare at him, both looking confused. Then understanding dawned on Julia's face and she spoke quickly.

"You don't understand, John. I think Yale's got it. I think he's found what wrong with Devon."

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

From the Ashes, Chapter 4

Disclaimer: See chapter 1

Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews; it's nice to know people are reading.

"You see I've been testing for viruses and bacteria mostly. For poisons and possible allergens, too. And I've found nothing. But Yale came today and reminded me of a whole avenue I've overlooked."

"I was teaching the children about why humanity left earth to live on the stations. We covered deforestation, pollution and environmental decline. Then we began to discuss what was, for the people of the time, the last straw; the Descolada pandemic. And I suddenly realised that the symptoms were very similar to those exhibited by Devon." Julia broke in again, obviously excited.

"The Descolada was caused by a protein, you see. Not a virus or bacterium. It attached itself to the patients' DNA and mutated their genetic make-up. Many of the victims died in the first few days, their systems overwhelmed by the shock. The unluckier ones lived for weeks. They developed tumours and growths. Some of them lost huge swathes of skin, leaving bone and tissue uncovered. And the fatality rate was one hundred percent. Once you became infected you were already dead. Millions died before a cure was developed, ironically by a doctor who was to far gone to have it do him any good."

"And this is what Devon has?"

"I think it's possible. Probable even. The symptoms fit –Devon certainly seems to have exhibited signs of the early stages - and it explains why I couldn't find anything wrong. I wasn't looking at her DNA." Julia sounded disgusted with herself.

"But an ancient earth disease? How would Devon have got that?" Danziger was struggling to understand; sometimes he felt so inadequate around educated people.

"And if it's so infectious, how come none of the rest of us got sick?" Danziger hadn't realised that Alonzo had followed him in, but he was glad someone else was as confused as him.

"I don't know. All I know is that it fits. I'm running tests now, so I should know for definite by the morning. But I really think we're right."

"And if it is this Descolada you can cure it?" Danziger heard the hope in voice and winced. So much for the rational, impartial leader.

"Easily. The cure is amazingly simple."

"Okay. This is great news Julia, but I think we should keep it to ourselves until we're certain." Julia's face fell at Danziger's words. She was excited and she wanted to share her success with everyone.

"But it will give everyone some hope, at least. And we could all do with that."

"Maybe so. But just say we're mistaken, or something goes wrong. I couldn't do that to Uly." At the mention of Devon's son Julia nodded. No-one wanted to take the risk of causing him more pain.

The rest of the day crept by slowly for the four people who knew the secret. Julia and Alonzo retired to his tent early, causing a few chuckles among the crew. Yale spent the evening conducting an inventory of supplies, keeping himself busy by doing work he'd already done the day before. Danziger tried to work on the Transrover. He set True and his new apprentice, Uly, the task of checking over the smaller vehicles. He caught the odd snatch of their conversation – mostly True talking but, now and then, he heard Uly's voice, too – and he could hear that their job was going a lot faster than his. He kept getting distracted by thoughts of Devon up and about, healthy and smiling. He was vaguely disturbed at how happy that picture made him. Every time the vision flashed in his head he ruthlessly repressed it. Danziger prided himself on dealing with life as it was, not as how he may wish it to be. And he still had his doubts about Julia's putative diagnosis. She was usually much more cautious, refusing to commit to diagnoses until she was absolutely certain. Her uncharacteristic pre-test-result confidence made him nervous. And so Danziger spent the evening torn between unwelcome hope and unspecified fear. In the end he sent the children to bed earl, undertook a rapid check of the camp and then went to bed himself, hoping that the hours would pass faster in sleep.

He awoke early the next morning, following a restless night haunted by dreams of a hale and hearty Devon gradually fade away before his eyes. The kids were still asleep so he crept softly out of the tent and then headed straight to the med-tent. As soon as he walked through the door he knew Julia had no good news for him. She was sitting slumped at the lab bench, a Petri dish in her hand and Alonzo's hand on her shoulder.

"Negative?" he asked, just for something to say.

"Negative." She confirmed what he already knew. Then she turned towards him and he could see the tears that streaked her face.

"I don't understand, John. I was so certain it had to be the explanation because I couldn't think of another. I still can't." Danziger swallowed his disappointment in the face of her distress.

"Don't worry, Julia. You're just tired. After some rest you'll think of something." Julia snorted out a cynical laugh.

"You don't get it, John. There is nothing wrong with Devon. Every test I run tells me she's perfectly healthy. But if we open that cryo-chamber she'll die. Of nothing." By the end of her short speech Julia was yelling and barely coherent, tears choking her voice so badly that Danziger had difficulty making out her words. He was looking at her, unsure what to say or do, when she suddenly slumped and began to slide from her stool. Danziger leapt up in alarm but Alonzo caught her and lowered her gently to the ground.

"What…" Danziger stopped speaking when Alonzo sheepishly waved a sediderm at him. "Whoah… She is going to kill you when she wakes up." Alonzo shrugged.

"Probably. But she needs to rest." He looked down at Julia tenderly and then picked her up.

"I'll put her to bed." He headed toward the tent flap and then paused.

"I'm sorry the news about Devon wasn't better." Danziger just nodded, slightly confused by the other man's statement and by the look of compassion on his face. But one thing Danziger was certain about; he was very glad they hadn't shared their hope with Uly.

Author's Note: Just so you know I borrowed the Descolada from Orson Scott Card's book _The Speaker for the Dead_. Apologies Orson, it just seemed like too good a disease to waste. As repayment I'll plug your books here: They're brilliant, go read them.


	5. Chapter 5

From the Ashes Chapter 5

Disclaimer: See chapter 1

Author's Note: This chapter is very short but it acts as a sort of bridge to the end parts of the story, so please bear with me.

The camp was dismantled around Julia's tent, until finally everything was ready to move out. Alonzo then lifted the still-sleeping Julia out of her sleeping bag and laid her in the back of the Transrover, deflecting questions with a simple, 'she's tired, that's all'. Danziger and Baines took her tent down and stowed it with the others. Then Danziger did a last minute check to make sure everything and everyone was present. He had to count twice, confused by getting one less person than he expected. And then angry at his confusion- it had been ten days now. He swung himself into the cab of the Transrover, started the engine – still using manual controls – and moved the caravan out.

They travelled on like that for seven more days before Danziger called a two day halt. This time it was because they had reached a large river and Danziger was worried about crossing it with the vehicles. He and Baines stood looking at the river while the rest of the group erected the camp.

"It seems shallow enough, Danziger."

"Yeah. But I'm worried about the current. I have no idea how much it would take to wash the 'rover downstream mid-crossing." Again Danziger was feeling inadequate. This planet kept throwing new challenges at them and Danziger wasn't sure how many more he could deal with. Not with the stakes as high as they were – he really didn't think they could survive without the Transrover. There was no way they could carry its load between them, even with Zero's help.

The two men turned from the river in response to Bess's yell that dinner was ready. That call caused a bit more enthusiasm than usual as a result of Alonzo's success at hunting that afternoon. He'd brought down a large deer-like creature which, according to Julia's scans, was entirely edible. The group all knew that Bess, when she was given something to work with, was a terrific cook. Danziger helped himself to a large bowl of stew and then sat down beside the Martins, ignoring Morgan's nervous glances.

"Bess, your father was a miner on earth, right?"

"Yes."

"Did he use transrovers in his operation?"

"Occasionally. Mostly he preferred to build ship ports next to his mines – then he could transport straight from the mines to the stations."

"What about rivers?"

"Rivers?" Bess's confusion was evident in her voice.

"Yeah. Can transrovers cross rivers?"

"Oh. I really can't say, Danziger. I don't know if you've been down to earth but there's not many rivers left – not that are worthy of the name anyway. And dad never really involved me in the specifics of his business – he never wanted me to stay on earth, so I didn't need to know anything about mining. I'm sorry."

"That's Okay, Bess. We'll just have to work this one out for ourselves." Danziger finished his stew in silence, a frown on his face. Then he spoke, loudly.

"Right. Listen up everybody. Tomorrow we need to find some way across this river. So Baines and I will run tests on the current and the 'rover – see if we can get it over if we make it heavy enough. Alonzo and Yale, you two can scout upstream and see if you can find an easier crossing. Walman and Martin, you can do the same downstream. And remember, it's the Transrover we're thinking about, so the crossing needs to be as shallow and as still as possible."

That night Uly woke most of the camp screaming. He had started having nightmares a few days before and they seemed to be getting worse. Danziger shook the child awake.

"It was just a dream, Uly. It's over now, you're awake." Danziger rocked the boy back and forth, trying to calm his tears.

"Shhh. It's Okay. It's over now." Eventually the tears stopped but Uly kept a tight grip on Danziger's shirt.

"Do you want to talk about it, kiddo? Sometimes that helps." Uly nodded into Danziger's shoulder but for a few moments said nothing. Then he spoke, his voice still hiccoughy from crying.

"Mum died. We opened the cryo-chamber and she died. And we had to bury her like Commander O'Neill and Eben and your friends." By the end of his explanation tears were streaming down Uly's face again and Danziger wiped them away.

"Hey, now. That won't happen, Uly. We won't open that chamber until we know for definite that we have a cure. Your mum is not going to die. You don't need to be afraid of that." John hoped the lie wasn't obvious in his voice. He'd lost count of the number of times he'd dreamed of Devon dying.

"Do you promise?"

"I promise." Danziger winced inwardly. He never made promises he couldn't keep, but Devon's recovery was entirely out of his hands. Even so, he couldn't let Uly live in constant fear – it was bad enough he was missing his mum without her having to worry about her dying.

"Now you should get back to sleep. Tomorrow's going to be a hard day for everybody." Uly allowed Danziger to lay him back down.

"Will you sing to me?" Danziger's eyebrows rose.

"Sing?"

"Mum always sings me to sleep when I have a bad dream."

"Um, I don't really sing very well, Uly." Danziger saw the boy's face fall and backed down. He glared at True, who'd sat silently through all of this, daring her to laugh and then he began to sing an old children's song.

"Have you heard of the battle of the Sugar Puffs,

Where most of the fighting was done?

It was there that a wee Sugar Puff man

Was shot by a Rice Crispie gun, gun, gun…"


	6. Chapter 6

From the Ashes Chapter 6

Disclaimer: See chapter 1

The following day turned out to be grey and drizzly, reminding the group that although they'd had several days of sunny weather, summer hadn't quite arrived yet. Danziger was afraid that Uly's nightmare would push him back into silence but the boy seemed to have forgotten about it. As soon as they'd eaten breakfast the two kids set out to explore, glad that since Yale was on one of the scouting teams they had the day off classes.

"Stay near camp. And away from the river." Danziger yelled after them.

"Sure, dad."

"Okay, Mr. Danziger." Danziger grimaced. He'd have to speak to Uly about calling him John. Given the circumstances 'Mr. Danziger' was just too formal.

The scout teams left straight after breakfast, heading out in opposite directions, Morgan still half asleep. Bess and Magus volunteered to collect samples of the local flora, in the hopes of finding something edible. Danziger agreed, embarrassed that he hadn't thought of that, but told them to take Cameron and Mazatl with them for safety and to make sure everyone kept their gear on in case he and Baines needed help. Then he sent Baines to get some rope and headed off to the med-tent. Julia was already there, working away at her microscope.

"Morning Julia." She turned to look at him and smiled.

"Good morning. How's Uly? That dream must have been pretty nasty to have him screaming like that. It wasn't the Terrians was it?"

"Nope. Just an ordinary nightmare. Uly says he hasn't heard from the Terrians since we left Devon."

"Alonzo says the same thing. He figures that maybe we're in an area with no Terrian tribes." Danziger shrugged. The diggers were the least of his problems at the minute and he didn't think he'd care if he never saw one again.

"Listen, Julia, I just dropped in to let you know the camp'll be empty for a while. Although I'm sure the kids'll be back as soon as they get cold."

"No problem. I'll be in here all morning. Then, this afternoon, I told Bess I'd scan her samples. Who knows, maybe this time she'll find some G889 potatoes." Danziger smiled. Bess foraging expeditions hadn't yet found anything more exciting than a few herbs.

"See you later, then." He left the tent, happy knowing that Alonzo's sediderm had had the desired effect. Julia had come to calmer and much more clear-headed than she'd been in days and in the week since she'd worked sensibly, with regular breaks. She was no less determined to cure Devon but she'd resigned herself to the fact that she wouldn't be able to do so overnight. Danziger scowled once at the cloudy sky and then headed to the river.

Walman and Morgan had made good time on the first leg of their scout. The terrain along the river was firm and flat, making for easier driving. For the first forty-five minutes Morgan was silent, a fact Walman was extremely grateful for. In their months on the planet he'd decided that a small amount of Morgan went a long way. The peace didn't last, however. When he finished the coffee Bess had packed for him – without offering Walman any – Morgan finally woke up. By the time Danziger was leaving the med-tent Walman had almost reached the end of his tether.

"How about that spot?"

"You mean the spot with all the rocks and the white water?" Morgan shot Walman a resentful look and remained silent. For about three minutes.

"Well how about _that_ spot?" Walman growled.

"Will you just shut-up, Martin! We are going to keep going along this river until we find a suitable crossing place. And by suitable I mean one where we won't all die! I _know_ you hate scouting. I _know_ you want to be back at camp. But asking that stupid question over and over isn't going to get you there any faster. All it's going to get you is pushed out of a moving ATV!" Morgan folded his arms and pouted.

"I was only trying to help."

"Well don't!"

Alonzo and Yale also travelled in silence at first, albeit a more companionable one. Yale was driving and Alonzo sat in the passenger seat, holding a mag-pro and keeping a close eye on the river. He didn't hold out much hope for this direction. The further downstream they travelled the deeper and faster the river seemed to be getting. Eventually Yale spoke, causing Alonzo to jump slightly.

"Julia seems much better."

"Yeah. A bit of real rest did her the world of good." Yale nodded and the two men lapsed back into silence. Which was why Yale didn't notice when, ten minutes later, Alonzo lost consciousness.

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

From the Ashes Chapter 7

Disclaimer: see chapter one

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Danziger pulled tight on the rope tied around Baines's waist, hauling the man back onto his feet.

"This is useless, Danziger. There's no way I'm going to make it across without breaking something." Danziger sighed in frustration.

"Okay, Baines. Come on back in." Baines slowly turned around, his gaze focused on the rocky bottom of the river. He cautiously began to pick his way back to the shore, struggling through water which was almost up to his waist and which was – as he'd told Danziger in no uncertain terms – was icy cold. Danziger watched his unsteady progress and thanked God that he'd won the toss. Today was not the kind of day you wanted to spend swimming. Baines made it to within arms reach of the shoreline before slipping. Danziger hauled him the rest of the way out. Baines lay on the grass, coughing.

"You Okay?"

"Yeah. Just peachy." Danziger smiled slightly.

"It's in a good cause, Baines."

"Whatever. I'm going to get changed." The younger man stood up and stomped, squishily, back to camp. Danziger followed, a worried frown replacing his smile. There was no way they were getting across the river here. He really hoped the scouting teams were having more luck.

They found True and Uly in camp, huddled around the campfire with Julia. Baines stomped to his tent and Danziger went to the fire where he put some water on to boil. He was pretty sure Baines would appreciate something warm after he changed.

"Finished exploring, kids?"

"Yeah. This campsite is _so _boring."

"Sorry I'll try to chose somewhere more exciting next time." True rolled her eyes and exchanged a disgusted glance with Uly. Julia laughed at their expressions. Before coming to G889 Julia hadn't spent much time with children who weren't sick and the antics of True and Uly never ceased to amuse her. Watching them she sometimes even imagined having children of her own. And that was a first for ambitious, career-driven Julia Heller. But the idea was definitely growing on her. She opened her mouth to join in the banter but was interrupted by her gear beeping. She slipped the headset on and pulled the view screen over her eye.

"Heller here." Yale's face filled her vision, his expression worried.

"Julia, I'm about an hour out of camp. Alonzo is unconscious and I'm bringing him in as fast as I can." Julia's stomach clenched.

"Unconscious? Is he breathing?"

"Yes. His breathing and pulse are fine."

"How long has he been out?"

"I'm not certain. I noticed about five minutes ago when he dropped the mag-pro out of the 'rail."

"Did he hit his head?"

"I don't see how. We've been in the vehicle all morning."

"Okay, Yale. Keep an eye on him. And bring him in as fast as you can. I need to get a look at him." Julia kept her voice and, she hoped, her face professional but inside her stomach churned and her heart pounded. Her reaction frightened her. She was feeling too much. And she was afraid that her panic – there was no other word for it – would affect her ability to do her job, that she would make a mistake. Maybe a fatal one. She leapt to her feet and began to pace around the campfire, reciting to herself all possible causes of non-trauma induced unconsciousness and their attendant treatments. But one thing kept leaping out at her. Alonzo could have the same thing as Devon and they had no cryo-chamber here. Alonzo would die. This scenario cycled round and round in her head, increasing her uncharacteristic panic. Suddenly she felt a hand grasp her shoulder and she jumped.

"It'll be Okay, Julia. Yale will have him here soon and you can go to work." Julia scowled at him.

"Unless he's already dead by then." Danziger opened his mouth to speak but then closed it again. There really was nothing he could say.

"Dr. Julia, Alonzo will be fine. We don't need to worry about him." Julia glanced down at Uly, who had moved to her side, and managed a small smile. She didn't want to upset the kids and she did appreciate Uly's attempt to cheer her up.

"Thank-you Uly." Uly merely nodded and then walked away, towards the tent were the enlarged Danziger family slept. True shot one last glance at the two adults and then followed him. She could see that her dad and Julia were worried and from years of experience she knew that it was better to steer clear of worried grown-ups. They tended to be unpredictable.

Yale drove the dunerail fast, but not recklessly. He knew he needed to get Alonzo to Julia quickly but he also knew that that wouldn't happen if he toppled the 'rail or knocked a wheel off. So Yale drove carefully, keeping a close eye on the terrain but occasionally glancing at Alonzo to check that his chest was still rising and falling. He managed to cut fifteen minute off his ETA and he drove into camp only forty-five minutes after calling Julia. She and Danziger met him at the edge of camp. Julia immediately ran her dia-glove over Alonzo's body. She frowned slightly and did it again. Then she turned to the two men.

"Can you carry him to the med-tent?"

Yale and Danziger nodded. Yale unstrapped Alonzo from the 'rail and the two men carried the unconscious pilot, following Julia. She gestured toward the cot at the back of the med-tent. Alonzo was laid down gently and then Julia spoke.

"Give me five minutes, guys." Yale and Danziger left the med-tent but they didn't go far, walking only a short distance away.

"You really have no idea what happened?"

"No. We were driving in silence and then I heard a clatter and when I looked over at Alonzo I saw he was unconscious. The clatter had been the mag-pro hitting the ground." Danziger heard the frustration in Yale's voice and so he decided not to question him further. At least not until he had some idea of what was happening. And hopefully Julia would be able to figure that out.

………………………………………………………………………………………………

"What about that spot?"

"Morgan, I swear…"

"No, no really. At least look." Walman cast his eyes to the river and stopped the ATV in shock. Morgan smiled, smugly.

"See? Told ya."

………………………………………………………………………………………………

True sat in the tent she shared with her dad and Uly and watched the boy.

"What're you doing?"

"Packing. Duh!" True ignored the insult.

"Why?"

"Because we'll be going soon."

"Yeah right. Going where exactly?"

"To fix everything." The certainty in Uly's voice caused True to fall silent. _Sometimes_, she thought,_ Uly can be damned spooky._

………………………………………………………………………………………………

Julia emerged from the med-tent to find Yale and Danziger standing in silence mere yards from the door. When they heard her coming they turned toward her – concern and anticipation on their faces.

"He's asleep."

"Did you find out what caused him to lose consciousness?"

"He didn't. He just fell asleep."

"But I tried to rouse him before I called you. I got no response."

"Neither did I, Yale. But there's no doubt about it – Alonzo is in a very deep sleep. Deeper than any I've seen outside cold sleep." Julia shook her head, puzzled.

" And so, what? He'll just wake up?" Danziger sounded disbelieving.

"He should. When he's ready."

"Is this the diggers? Are they doing this?"

"I have no way of telling, John. Although it does appear that some sort of external influence must be responsible. It's certainly not ordinary sleep."

"But do the Terrians work like this? Have they ever pulled him into the dreamplane when he was awake before?"

"Not that I know of, Yale. I don't even know if they're capable of doing that. Although Alonzo has been able to enter the dreamplane while awake it's always been when the Terrians were present and it's always been voluntary. And anyway, maybe Alonzo did doze off first and opened the way for them. We can ask him when he wakes."

"I did notice that Alonzo seemed a little tired this morning." Yale's comment made Danziger smile slightly.

"I heard rumours he had a busy night last night." Julia blushed and Yale chuckled.

"Anyway, there's nothing more we can do. He should…" Danziger's gear interrupted Julia and he clicked it on.

"Danziger."

"Walman here. Can't get visual for some reason. But we've found it, Danziger." There was a brief pause and then Walman's voice came back, sounding exasperated.

"Morgan found it. We should be able to cross here and barely get our feet wet."

"That's great. How far?"

"About two hours from where you are. Easy ground the whole way."

"Okay, come on in then. We've got a bit of a situation here but it doesn't seem to be serious. Hopefully we can head out in the morning."

"Copy. See you in a coupla hours" Walman signed out and Danziger flicked his gear off. He grinned at Julia and Yale.

"We've got a way across." Yale nodded and Julia grinned.

"Yale, will you call Bess's team back in. Julia, can Alonzo be moved?"

"Yes."

"Fine then. We'll pack up tonight and tomorrow we'll move on. If we leave early we should be well across the river before sunset." Yale walked away, hailing Bess on his gear, and Julia returned to the med-tent in order to start packing her equipment. And in order to keep watch on Alonzo. As her patient she was confident he would be fine but as the man she was very much afraid she was falling in love with she wanted to keep a watch over his sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

From the Ashes Chapter 8

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Shortly after dawn the following day the small caravan of settlers moved away from their campsite, filled with a new hope. Danziger, whose turn it was to walk, was the last to leave. He shared the hope of the rest of the group but he couldn't dismiss the sadness he felt at moving even further from Devon. He knew he was following her wishes, but he didn't like it. He couldn't bring himself to believe that leaving her behind was the best thing to do. Now, looking around the empty campsite, he reminded himself that it was the _only_ thing he could have done. The reminder didn't make him feel any better. It never did. Sighing, he moved slowly after the rest of the group, forcing himself to make plans for the rest of the day.

Walman – and Martin – had given him a detailed report on the crossing point and Danziger began to devise the best way to get everything and everybody over safely. Although, by the sound of it, it shouldn't be difficult to traverse the river at the chosen place. Walman had described it as being almost a causeway. It sounded ideal but it was in Danziger's nature to plan for the worst. Pessimistic, Devon called it. Danziger preferred to think of it as cautious. Either way it had saved him more times than he cared to remember.

He speeded up, not wanting to be the one who kept everybody back. He had just caught up with the last people of the group – Morgan and Bess – when Alonzo swung down from the transrover and sprinted towards him. Danziger watched in shock. The last he had seen of Alonzo that morning had been Baines and Walman lifting the still unconscious pilot onto the 'rover, supervising by a concerned, hovering Julia. Even now Julia followed close behind him, an angry frown on her face and her dia-glove still on her arm, mute testimony to Alonzo's abrupt awakening and departure. Alonzo reached Danziger and, slightly out of breath, held up a hand to stop him.

"We need to stop." Danziger raised a quizzical eyebrow.

"Why?"

"Because I know what's wrong with Devon. And I know how to fix it." Julia reached them just as Alonzo made this statement.

"What?" Alonzo glanced at her and then turned his attention back to Danziger.

"The Terrians showed me. They dreamed with me. It took a while for me to understand. To accept, I guess you could say."

"Accept what?" Yale's arrival had gone unnoticed by the small group and his voice started Danziger and Julia. Alonzo merely answered the question.

"It's a long story. Sorta. We should stop and I'll tell everybody. That'll save time." Danziger shook his head.

"Uh-uh. Uly doesn't hear this until after we do."

"It's Okay Mr. Dan…John. The Terrians told me everything would be fine." Uly had crept up, with True, and now he slipped his hand into Danziger's and squeezed it reassuringly. Danziger almost laughed out loud – the boy was trying to make him feel better.

"Okay." Danziger flipped his gear down and hailed Magus, who was driving the transrover at the front of the cavalcade.

"Magus, Danziger here. Call a halt. Alonzo has some news for everybody."

"Understood." Uly and True flung off their packs and sat on the ground. Julia bullied Alonzo into letting her examine him. The pilot stood still, patient except for the eye roll he directed at the kids who immediately started giggling. Yale and Danziger remained standing, each caught up in their own thoughts. As usual, dealing with the Terrians and their Dreamplane made Danziger nervous. He was a practical man who disliked things he didn't understand, couldn't take apart and analyse. And the diggers topped his list. He found it difficult to trust them because he could never unravel their motivations. He was glad they'd healed Uly but he was still worried about what the connection they'd apparently forged would do to the boy in the long term.

Danziger's worried thoughts were interrupted by the arrival of the rest of the group. Alonzo glance around to make sure everyone was there and then he began to speak.

"Devon isn't sick. Julia was right, there's nothing wrong with her." Julia shook her head.

"But she's dying." Alonzo nodded at her and smiled.

"She is and she isn't." Danziger rolled his eyes angrily. This was starting to sound like nothing more than typical digger gobbledegook. He opened his mouth to say so but Alonzo raised a hand to stop him.

"Give me a minute, Danziger. This is hard enough to explain. Um. Okay. So the way I understand it is we were right – G889 is alive. But more than that, the planet is semi-sentient. Capable of making basic decisions about its own well-being. And the species that live here are all connected to the planet in one way or another. I didn't understand that part exactly but I know that the Terrians are the most extreme example. They can actually _talk_ to the planet. Sort of. I didn't really understand that part either. But the Terrians showed me that the planet had decided to try and forge a link with us. I think because whatever link the Terrians have with Uly is working. The Terrians are learning to understand us through him and the planet is learning through them. And that's why the Terrians chose Devon." Alonzo paused and Yale jumped in,

"What do you mean 'the Terrians'? I thought you said the planet was forging a link." Danziger nodded and added,

"And I still don't understand, why Devon?"

"The Terrians act as a conduit for the planet. I think they've evolved to the point where they're part of the planet in some way. A lot of this wasn't very clear. Anyway, on behalf of the planet, they chose one of us for it to try and link with, as a sort of trial run. They chose Devon because, as the Terrians see it, she's part of Uly. They don't have relationships like ours and they have difficulty understanding. But they kept saying that Devon and Uly are made of the same thing. I'm guessing they meant DNA." He glanced at Julia.

"It's possible…as parent and child Devon and Uly do share several genetic traits. They are partly the same at a genetic level." Alonzo nodded.

"That's what I figured. But why they chose Devon isn't important. What is, is the fact that the planet decided we were worthy of this trial - they call it a gift - but then we rejected it. That was their interpretation of us freezing Devon. When we put her in the cryo-chamber the process was halted and they took this to mean that we didn't want the gift. And so they – both the Terrians and the planet - rejected us. That's why Uly and I haven't been able to contact the Terrians."

"So what happened? Why did they contact you now?" Bess sounded nervous, as though not sure she wanted to know the answer to her question. The idea of the planet rejecting them scared her, reminded her of Elizabeth's words, her predictions of doom. Alonzo smiled at Uly.

"Uly started having nightmares." Uly grimaced but spoke calmly and clearly.

"I kept seeing my mum dying. We had to bury her in the ground and leave her, just like Commander O'Neill. Alonzo nodded.

"The Terrians saw his dreams – I guess they were keeping an eye on us – and after a few times they realised what this meant. That we didn't understand the gift and thought Devon was dying. 'Returning' they kept calling it. So they pulled me into the Dreamplane to explain. What they've done won't kill Devon. It'll just connect her to the planet."

"But why make her sick? They didn't make Uly sick." Julia's voice was wary.

"We don't know that – Uly was gone for hours and doesn't remember a thing. Also, he was already sick, maybe that made a difference. And, from what Alonzo says, what's being done to Devon is different from what was done to Uly." Yale's voice sounded calm as he thought out loud but it infuriated Danziger.

"So, what, Alonzo? Are you saying that we should take Devon out and let this thing run its course? Let her die? Because that's what all Julia's instruments tell us is going to happen." Alonzo placed a hand on Danziger's arm, only to have it shrugged off.

"She won't die. Not really. That part was very clear. The Terrians don't want to hurt Devon."

"Well that's comforting! What if they're lying? Or just wrong and it doesn't work? Even aliens can make mistakes you know." Morgan's harsh voice jolted Danziger from his own fear. Reluctantly he spoke.

"The diggers have never lied to us before. And whatever they did on Uly worked. What do you think, Julia?" The doctor raised her hands in an exaggerated shrug.

"I don't know, John. I can't give you any medical advice on this one. Whatever it is the Terrians do is far over my head. But I'm inclined to believe them. Like you said, they've never lied to us before – if they don't want us to know something they usually just refuse to answer." Danziger ran a hand through his hair, frustrated. He shouldn't have to make decisions like this. But, looking at the people around him, he could see that they expected him to. He looked down at Uly who gazed back, his child's eyes calm and confident. The boy squeezed his hand again. Eventually Danziger spoke.

"We'll vote. But first, does anyone have any more questions for Alonzo?" There was silence for a while and then True spoke up.

"So if this works does that mean that Devon will get totally better and we can all go to New Pacifica together?" A lot of what Alonzo had said had gone over her head and she wanted to be certain she'd got the general idea. Alonzo nodded at her.

"Then I vote yes, we try." Her voice was excited and hopeful.

"Me too." Uly piped up, grinning.

"I believe that in this we can trust the Terrians. I vote yes." Yale spoke with certainty and, as always, his opinion carried a lot of weight. It was at times like these that Danziger wondered why Devon hadn't chosen the android, her oldest friend, to lead. Julia glanced between Yale and Alonzo and then nodded her vote. Alonzo took her hand before adding his yes. Bess gave her support quietly but explained her reason.

"I miss Devon." Morgan shook his head forcibly.

"No. I vote no. We have no idea what those aliens are up to. It could be some sort of trap." Walman snorted.

"Why would they need to trap us? We're already stuck on their planet and any time they wanted they could just pop out of the earth and kill us all before we knew what was happening, if that's what they wanted. I vote yes." Slowly, the rest of the group added their votes. Yeses all, except Morgan, although many seemed reluctant and none had the enthusiasm of the two children. Finally, Danziger nodded.

"The ayes have it. Tomorrow we'll send a group back to Bennett's ship."

"You're splitting us up?" Morgan was incredulous.

"A small group travelling in the ATV or 'rail can make the trip in less than a third of the time it would take the 'rover. And retracing our steps would use up resources we can't afford. We can't afford to make the 'rover travel one kilometre more than is absolutely necessary." Yale nodded in agreement.

"John is right. It makes sense for the majority of us to stay here. We can use the time to hunt, replenish our supplies. And to carry out all those little repairs we never have time for when we're constantly moving." Morgan looked like he was going to continue arguing but Bess stretched up and whispered something in his ear.

"Fine. Okay." Morgan held his hands up in surrender.

"So I guess we're setting up camp again, less than an hour after we took it down?" Magus tried to sound grumpy but she couldn't hide the smile in her voice.

"Yeah. May as well use last night's site. It's not like we got far." At Danziger's words everyone began to head back to the recently abandoned campsite, the assigned drivers returning to their vehicles to carefully reverse them into position.


	9. Chapter 9

From the Ashes Chapter 9

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Author's Note: Thanks for the review Vertov, nice to know you're enjoying. It's always nice when readers take the time to pass on their opinions.

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No-one in the camp slept well that night, except for Uly and Alonzo. Those two appeared to have complete faith in the Terrians. Everybody else was worried. Throughout the day they had maintained a positive façade, talking and joking about what they would do when Devon came back, but inside they all shared the concern that they'd made a mistake. Just because everyone had voted in favour of the plan didn't mean it was the right thing to do. Democracy was not infallible. And everybody could remember all too well the time they'd voted to leave Julia behind. They certainly hadn't been right then – leaving their only doctor behind had been foolish in the extreme, given their situation – and that situation had proved the danger of emotion-led decisions.

With the fall of night these doubts floated to the surface and chased sleep away. For this reason dawn saw the entire group – even Morgan, the morning hater – congregated around the campfire. Bess prepared breakfast while Danziger laid out the plan for the next few days.

"Alonzo and Julia will take the 'rail back for Devon. Uly will go with them. And Yale. It should take three days to reach the ship and three days back. We don't know how long they'll have to stay there but we'll be here for at least a week. Probably longer. And we'll use every minute of that time. The vehicles could use a thorough overhaul. And, like Yale said yesterday, we could use some meat so we'll try and find more of whatever it was Alonzo shot down the other day. We can even set up a hut to smoke some in so it will last. I think Bess said she's seen that done before, so she can supervise." When he finished speaking Danziger moved away from the group, intending to re-inventory the supplies Julia and the other three were taking with them. He didn't want them to be caught short, especially if it took a while for Devon to recover.

He had barely reached the 'rail when Bess caught up with him.

"John, do you really think it's wise to let Uly go? What if it doesn't work?"

"Then Uly should have the chance to say good-bye. And so should Devon." Bess looked at him, eyes full of tears. She nodded, slowly.

"I just don't want him to get hurt."

"None of us do. But some things are out of our control." Bess nodded again and walked slowly away, wiping at her eyes and resuming her optimistic mask. Danziger returned his attention to the supplies only to be interrupted almost immediately by Yale.

"John, may I have a moment?"

"Of course. What is it?"

"I think you should go back to the ship with the others instead of me."

"What? Why?"

"Because of Uly. If anything goes wrong he'll want you there."

"That's nonsense – he'll have you. And Julia and Alonzo. I chose you for a reason, Yale. You're closer to Uly than anyone else. And to Devon. You and her son are the first people she'll want to see when she wakes up." Yale wasn't entirely sure about that but mentioning that Devon might be just as happy to see Danziger was not the way to win this argument. Instead, he used duty.

"Uly has become very attached to you, John. And to True. He sees you as family and he knows that you're the one Devon chose to look after him. You should be there." Yale's none-to-subtle reminder of Danziger's promise struck home. The younger man sighed and ran his hand through his hair.

"I don't know, Yale. I feel bad about the idea of leaving everybody. I'm supposed to be leading them. I promised that, too."

"I can keep an eye on things here, John. Everybody knows what they have to do. Bringing Devon back is the best thing you can do for this group." Danziger nodded his reluctant agreement, reflecting again that he wasn't cut out for this sort of responsibility.

"Okay, I'll go." Yale nodded in satisfaction.


	10. Chapter 10

From the ashes Chapter 10

Disclaimer: see chapter one

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The three days it took the small band to return to Bennett's ship went smoothly, both for Danziger's team and for the rest of the group back at camp. Baines and Mazatl had quite amazing success hunting – the woodlands around the campsite turned out to be rife with wildlife – and Bess's design for a smokehouse proved effective. Yale continued classes with a slightly resentful True who was heard to wish several times a day that she hadn't had to stay behind. Danziger checked in regularly via gear, updating them on the rather boring progress of the rescue team, as it had become known. Everybody in camp kept busy, nobody wanting too much time to brood on what would happen when Danziger and the others finally reached the ship.

For the rescue team there was no such luxury. They had nothing to do except sit in the 'rail and watch the scenery pass by. It was hard to stop thinking under these circumstances. Uly spent the time thinking about all the stories he'd have to tell his mum, all the things they'd done while she'd been asleep. He couldn't wait to tell her about John falling in the river. With thoughts like this, the time passed pleasantly for Uly.

Alonzo kept running the details of his dream over and over in his head, making sure there was nothing he had missed. Julia used the time to try and prepare herself for an act that went against her knowledge, her training and even her genes. She was terrified of everything she knew could go wrong. For Danziger the three days dragged by slowly. He alternated between hope and panic, hiding both behind a mask of calm for the sake of Uly.

It was early afternoon on the third day when the rail pulled to a halt in front of Bennett's spaceship. Danziger insisted on a quick scout of the immediate area before allowing anyone inside. Caution never hurt. Eventually he was convinced that everything was exactly as they had left it and he led the way into the cold sleep bay. Devon was still where they had left her – standing in the cryo-chamber, wrapped in a white robe, her eyes closed and her face pale. Danziger was unprepared for the sudden jolt he experienced upon seeing her. He stopped in his tracks, allowing the other three to pass him. Julia went straight to the control panel although she didn't touch anything. Alonzo came up behind her and placed his hands on her shoulders. Uly lifted his ribbon bedecked staff down from the chamber and stood staring up at his mother. For a few moments nobody moved or spoke and then Danziger recovered from his shock.

"Is everything okay, Julia?" The doctor nodded.

"We can do this whenever we're ready." Danziger walked over and took Uly by the hand, moving the boy away from the cryo-chamber. Then he moved into position to catch Devon when the door opened.

"Let's go, Julia." Julia leaned forward and hesitantly typed in the deactivation code, starting the thaw cycle. She watched the readout intently for what was the longest thirty seconds of her life.

"Now, John." As she spoke the cryo-chamber door slid open and Devon fell out into Danziger's arms. She immediately started coughing and Julia ran to her side, ready to scan her with the dia-glove, even though she knew it would do no good. Danziger lowered Devon to the ground and pushed her hair out of her face. She opened her eyes and spoke hoarsely.

"Danziger?" She raised her arm to touch him and he smiled at her.

"It's me, Devon. I'm here. And so's Uly and Julia and Alonzo."

"Uly?"

"Hi, mum." Uly leaned in and kissed her on the cheek.

"How do you feel, Devon?" Julia asked, ever the doctor.

"Tired. And my head hurts." Julia nodded and held her canteen to Devon's mouth.

"Try and drink. The moisture will make it easier for you to talk." Devon swallowed thirstily, her body anxious to replace the fluid lost in cold sleep. When she finished Danziger helped her to stand and they walked slowly out to the temporary med-tent which had been set up outside. He was tempted to carry her but he knew she wouldn't appreciate it; Devon Adair was the proudest person he'd ever met. And so they walked, him taking most of her weight. The journey seemed to take forever but eventually he was helping her onto the med-tent cot. She lay there panting, exhausted by the short walk and even paler than she been when they wakened her. Uly walked to the other side of the cot and took his mother's hand. She turned her face toward him and smiled before turning back to Danziger.

"How long was I out?"

"About three weeks." Devon nodded.

"I expected it would take longer than that to find a cure."

"Well, you know Julia. She worked non-stop trying to figure out what was wrong." Julia shot a sharp glance at Danziger but he ignored her. They had all agreed not to tell Devon the truth, not to stress her any more than they had too.

"I hope you made sure she took care of herself." Danziger nodded.

"It was a tough job though." Devon laughed, which started her coughing again. Julia placed and oxygen mask over her nose and mouth and almost immediately Devon's breathing returned to normal. Uly squeezed her hand and Devon smiled at him again, reaching out to stroke his hair. She removed the mask and spoke to her son.

"It's so good to see you, Uly. Hey, I think you've grown." Uly shrugged.

"My trousers are too small. Bess is making me new ones." Devon smiled, pleased. Every sign that her son was healthy at last delighted her. She lowered her hand to her side and, still smiling, drifted to sleep. Danziger looked up, panicked, but Julia smiled at him reassuringly.

"She's just sleeping. She'll probably keep drifting in and out while her body does whatever it's doing." Danziger nodded, relieved, and, without thinking, picked up Devon's hand, clasping it securely between his own.

Throughout the rest of the day and the following night Devon alternated between waking and sleeping. Sometimes when she woke she was confused and delirious but mostly she was lucid. She listened to Uly's stories and laughed hard at the image of Danziger lying in the river. Danziger scowled in mock indignation, which made her laugh harder. Devon also spent a lot of time asking questions about the group's progress. She grilled Danziger about everything that had happened while she'd been asleep. He answered all her questions patiently but with trepidation. He was very afraid that he'd done it all wrong and he knew Devon wouldn't hesitate to tell him so if that's what she felt. But shortly after midnight, as Devon drifted off to sleep once again, she mumbled,

"You've done a good job, John." Danziger grinned, amazed at how great it felt to hear her say that.

"Thanks, Adair." Danziger spoke even though he knew she wouldn't hear. He leaned forward and stuck a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Then he stood, stretched and went to find a pillow for Uly who had fallen asleep with his head on his mother's bed, her hand still clasped in his much smaller one. Danziger fetched the pillow from the 'rail and returned just in time to see Devon stop breathing.


	11. Chapter 11

From the Ashes Chapter 11

Disclaimer: see chapter 1

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Danziger yelled for Julia, shocking Uly awake. The doctor ran into the tent and immediately took in the scene. She grabbed her dia-glove and ran it over Devon. Then she began to try and shock Devon's heart into beating. After several futile tries she turned to the three people hovering behind her.

"There's nothing I can do. Her organs have shut down completely. I think the stress was simply too much for her system." Julia fought to maintain an air of professional detachment but her eyes filled with tears which spilled over and ran freely down her cheeks. She had pronounced dozens of deaths in her career but none had hurt like this one.

Danziger dropped his head into his hands and sank, silently, to the ground. Alonzo stared at Devon's body, anger and confusion warring for dominance on his face. He had believed the Terrians, had been absolutely convinced that they knew what they were doing, that they wouldn't hurt Devon. Uly looked at the three adults, taking in their grief, and then closed his eyes. After a moment he spoke.

"You don't need to be sad. She's just asleep." Julia and Danziger looked at him, anguished.

"No Uly, not this time. I'm sorry, honey, but your mum is dead." Despite her best efforts, Julia's voice quavered but Uly didn't seem to notice. He walked to his mother's side and lifted her hand, holding it as he had done all night. The adults glanced at each other, uncertain as to how to deal with this. Julia shrugged and mouthed at the other two,

"Maybe we should give him a minute?" Danziger looked at Uly, standing beside his mother's dead body and then nodded his assent.

Together the defunct rescue team left the med-tent and settled on the ground outside, far enough away to give Uly some privacy but close enough to hear if he called. No-one spoke – each too wrapped up in grief and guilt to think of anything to say. Minutes passed and Danziger began to think of returning to the med-tent and bringing Uly out. He heaved himself to his feet but had only gone two steps when the tent flap was pushed open and Uly came running out. Danziger just had time to notice the look of joy on the boy's face before Devon followed her son out of the tent. Danziger stood stock still and stared. Devon was smiling widely and Danziger was convinced he had never seen anything as wonderful in his entire life. Julia pushed past him and ran her dia-glove over Devon who twirled around to make the scan easier. Julia stepped back slightly and then started laughing.

"You're alright. You're fine." Devon nodded, still smiling. Julia flung her arms around her friend.

"Welcome back, Devon." Devon hugged her back and wiped the tears from Julia's face. Alonzo took Julia's place, wrapping Devon in a fierce hug.

"Welcome back, Devon." Devon squeezed him back and then steeped away. She turned to Danziger, who hadn't moved, and her smile widened.

"No welcome back from you, Danziger?" Danziger just stared and Devon laughed out loud. She walked over to him and peered up into his face.

"Hellooo. Is anyone home?" Danziger blinked and seemed to come out of a trance. He put his hands on Devon's shoulders and pulled her into a hug.

"It's good to see you better, Adair." Devon chuckled against his chest.

"It's pretty good to _be_ better." Danziger put his hands back on her shoulders and pushed her away slightly. He stared intently at her face.

"Are you sure you feel okay?"

"Better than okay, John. I feel perfect." Devon smiled reassuringly at him and Danziger nodded slowly. He reached out and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. Devon blushed slightly and looked away, but her smile widened. Danziger seemed unaware of what he had done, still staring at Devon as if he could determine the truth of her words just by looking. He turned his attention to Julia, who was watching the exchange with a small, smug smile.

"Are you sure?"

"It worked John. Devon is perfectly healthy."

"I told you." Devon sounded a little frustrated with Danziger even though she knew he was just concerned. Uly walked over to Danziger and pulled on his hand to get his attention.

"The Terrians say it worked, too. Mum is a part of the planet now." Danziger frowned slightly – he was glad Devon appeared to be healed but he was still uncomfortable about the idea of her joining with the planet. Devon saw the concern in his eyes and hastened to assuage it.

"Don't worry, Danziger. I'm still me." Danziger continued to look at her for a few seconds and then a small smile crept across his face,

"And that's supposed to be good news, is it?" His sudden change of reaction threw Devon for a moment but then the teasing insult sank in and she slapped him on the arm.

"Hey!" Danziger grinned at her and Uly, Julia and Alonzo started laughing. Devon folded her arms in mock offence but she couldn't keep it up and quickly joined in the others' laughter.


	12. Chapter 12

From the Ashes chapter 12

Disclaimer: You know the drill.

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The successful and ebullient rescue team left Bennett's ship early the next morning. Getting five people into the 'rail was a challenge. It wouldn't have been possible at all had Uly not been so small. Alonzo drove and Julia sat beside him. Uly sat in the back, squeezed between his mum and Danziger, a huge, happy grin on his face. Right now, as far as he was concerned, life couldn't get any better. Before they even started moving Danziger and Devon were wriggling around, trying to get comfortable.

"Tell me, Danziger, why exactly did you bring a four-seater vehicle for five people. I mean, I know optimism isn't your strong suit, but still…" Danziger scowled at her over Uly's head.

"I didn't want to leave the rest of the group with no small vehicles. I figured we could manage."

"Just shows what you know." Danziger's scowl deepened and Devon laughed. She'd been doing that a lot since her revival the day before.

The two-and-a-half day journey back to the camp passed quickly, despite the discomfort. Uly kept up a steady stream of chatter, filling his mother in on every detail of what the group had done since placing Devon in the cryo-chamber. Danziger was amazed at exactly how much Uly had taken in. Occasionally, Danziger or Julia or Alonzo managed to get a word in but mostly those three days belonged to Uly and no one begrudged him his happy chatter.

Shortly after noon on the third day the arrived back at camp to find everybody congregated around the campfire, waiting on them. True was the first to come running over, hugging her dad and then staring warily at Devon before hugging her too. AS if this served as some sort of cue, the rest of the group flocked around Devon, hugging her and exclaiming at her healthy appearance; the journey from the ship had served to put colour back in her cheeks. Bess cried, a huge smile on her face, as she greeted Devon. Yale wiped tears from his eyes and held her close for a long while – he had feared that he would never again see the woman he thought of as his daughter. And yet here she stood, laughing but looking a little overwhelmed at all the attention. Danziger let the greetings continue for a few minutes longer and then he intervened.

"Okay, Okay, let's give the woman some room to breathe." The people crowding around Devon fell back, abashed, and Bess and True escorted Devon to a seat beside the fire.

"Would you like something to eat, Devon? We've got stew with actual meat in it."

"Actual meat, huh? You've obviously been busy." True grinned at Devon and sat down beside her.

"We have. While dad was gone Walman and Mazatl shot lots of animals – we've got piles of meat now. And me and Bess and Magus smoked it. That's why my hair smells smoky. And Baines made some kind of machine. I forget the name of it but he says it'll make a surprise for everyone so we can have a welcome-back-Devon party." True stopped for breath and both Devon and Danziger looked quizzically at Baines who had a slightly sheepish expression on his face.

"A still. I made a still. It, um, didn't work very well, though. Only one batch was drinkable. But there's enough for a toast at any rate."

"And you're sure it's not going to poison us all?" Danziger asked cautiously, having been burned before by home-made alcohol.

"Walman and I tested it." Danziger glanced at Devon, who shrugged.

"Okay then, Baines. Bring it out and we'll toast Devon's return." Baines reached under the crate he was sitting on and withdrew a large canteen. He poured a little of the clear liquid into everybody's cup, passing over Uly and True who were given water by Yale. The strong smell caused most of the group to screw up their noses. Danziger raised his cup.

"To Devon. And to having everybody back together again."

"To Devon", the whole group chorused before swallowing the drink. Bess and Yale spat it straight out again and the rest of the group choked uncontrollably, except Baines and Walman who looked around, puzzled.

"What is that, about eighty proof?" Julia wheezed. Devon nodded.

"Baines, I can't help wonder what you and Walman normally drink if you both thought that was okay!" The rest of the group joined in Devon's teasing, the children looking on in mystified, but happy, silence. Danziger sat back on his crate and looked around at the laughing faces, feeling better than he had at any time since crashing on G889.

_Once again this planet has blindsided us –taking Devon away and then giving her back. Terrifying us and then giving us hope. Hope that the planet is accepting us, that we need not fear the fate of Bennett's group. Hope that the colonists will find a home here. And with Devon back that hope becomes almost a certainty. _

The end.

A/N: I have a sequel if anyone's interested. Please review, this is the first longish story I've ever finished and I'd really like to know what people thought. Even if they hated it, although in that case please tell me why.


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